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EFFECTIVE VOCABULARY TEACHING STRATEGIES FOR THE ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC PURPOSES ESL CLASSROOM Joseph Mukoroli Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Arts in Teaching degree at the SIT Graduate Institute, Brattleboro, Vermont March 1, 2011 AYMAT Thesis Advisor: Elka Tod...

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EFFECTIVE VOCABULARY TEACHING STRATEGIES FOR THE ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC PURPOSES ESL CLASSROOM

Joseph Mukoroli

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Arts in Teaching degree at the SIT Graduate Institute, Brattleboro, Vermont

March 1, 2011

AYMAT Thesis Advisor: Elka Todeva

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The author grants the SIT Graduate Institute permission to reproduce and distribute this paper, in whole or in part, in either electronic or in print format.

Author‘s Signature______________________________________________

© Joseph Mukoroli, 2010. All rights reserved.

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This project by Joseph Mukoroli is accepted in its present form.

Date_____________________________________

Project Advisor_________________________________

Project Reader_________________________________

Acknowledgements:

I would like to express my sincere gratitude towards my advisor, Elka Todeva, for her unwavering support throughout the completion of this project. My knowledge on Second Language Acquisition has been immensely enriched by your dynamic teaching skills and knowledge.

I would also like to thank my family in Namibia for their unwavering support and constant encouragement, which inspired me to complete the titanic task of completing my MAT.

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ABSTRACT

Vocabulary learning is an important and indispensable part of any language learning process. The author of this thesis focuses on effective vocabulary teaching strategies in the English for Academic Purposes ESL classroom. Drawing on findings obtained from observing three English for Academic Purposes ESL classrooms across the U.S.A, several current databases and his personal experience as a teacher and learner, the author discusses various effective vocabulary teaching strategies in the English for Academic Purposes classroom which could greatly assist English language learners in their journey of language acquisition and therefore expedite the language learning process.

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ERIC Descriptors: Vocabulary development English (Second Language) Teaching Methods English for Academic Purpose Creative Teaching Educational Media ⑤

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1

Introduction……………………………………………………………1

Chapter 2

What is vocabulary? ……………………………………………………6

Chapter 3

How we learn vocabulary………………………………………………11

Chapter 4

How different institutions facilitate vocabulary learning in

Chapter

the English for Academic Purposes, ESL classroom…………………..33 Chapter 5

Insights, challenges and solutions……………………………………….41

Chapter 6

Conclusion……………………………………………………………….43

References………………………………………………………………………………..46 Appendix………………………………………………………………………………….47

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CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ” The more one considers the matter, the more reasonable it seems to suppose that lexis is where we need to start from, the syntax needs to be put to the service of words and not the other way round.” (Widdowson in Lewis, 1993: 115) Vocabulary teaching and learning is a constant challenge for teachers as well as students because historically there has been minimal focus on vocabulary instruction in the ESL classroom. Due to this, an increased emphasis on vocabulary development is crucial for the English language learner in the process of language learning. According to Colorado (2007, as cited in Adger, 2002) the average native English speaker enters nursery school knowing at least 5,000 words while the average English language learner may know 5,000 words in his/ her native language but only a few words in English. The reality is that native speakers continue to learn new words while English language learners face the double challenge of building that foundation and closing that language gap. The following table indicates how many words are needed for effective communication in an L2. LEVEL

NUMBER OF WORDS

TEXT COVERAGE, %

HIGH-FREQUENCY WORDS

2,000

87

ACADEMIC VOCABULARY

800

8

TECHNICAL VOCABUALRY

2,000

3

TOTAL TO BE LEARNED

4,800

98

1

LOW – FREQUENCY WORDS

123,200

2

TOTAL

128,000

100

(Nation and New man, 1997:239)

Technical vocabulary is words or phrases that are primarily used in a specific line of work or profession. For example, an electrician needs to know technical words such as capacitor and surge capacity, words that people outside that industry never use. Academic vocabulary on the other hand is the vocabulary critical to understanding the concepts of the content taught in schools (Stahl and Fairbanks, 1986 as cited in Zwiers, 2008). Another crucial point to consider is the amount of time it takes for English language learners (ELLs) to learn English and be ready for school. While it takes one to three years for ELLs to develop Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills (BICS), they need seven years to develop Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP) (Collier, 1999; Cummins, 2000, as cited in Adger, 2002). From my personal experience of attending English for Academic Purposes class in Ohio University, I have an understanding why ELLs would be struggling with the academic content. Firstly, the English language learners are doing two jobs at the same time; they are learning a new language (English) while learning new academic concepts. They are literally moving between two different worlds.

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Secondly, ELLs have to work harder and need more scaffolding than the average native English-speaking student who has an age- and level-appropriate command of the English language. Scaffolding is providing support for students as they learn new skills or information (Cummins, 2000, as cited in Taylor, 1990). Thirdly, academic vocabulary is often very technical and less frequently used than conversational English used in the English language classroom and students are constantly required to use higher level language function such as analyzing, predicting, explaining and justification. Due to the enormous and alarming gap between the acquisition of basic conversation English and academic English, it is therefore important for teachers in the English for Academic Purposes ESL classroom to be knowledgeable about the most effective and current teaching strategies in vocabulary instruction and provide constant academic scaffolding to ELLs. The English for Academic Purposes classroom focuses mostly on academic language. Academic language is the language used by teachers and students for the purpose of acquiring new knowledge (Stahl and Fairbanks, 1992, as cited in Zwiers, 2008). Cummins (2001, as cited in Herrel, 2004) defines academic English as the English needed for reading, writing, speaking and listening in the content areas. Hence, if students in the English for Academic Purposes classroom need a language proficiency that will enable them to comprehend academic content and participate in activities and assignments, then it is even more important for the teacher to employ effective and dynamic teaching strategies that will empower the students to master the required tasks.

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Since the focus of this study is on effective vocabulary teaching strategies employed by teachers in the English for Academic Purposes classroom, it is crucial to highlight the importance of academic vocabulary instruction in the English for academic Purposes ESL classroom. Stahl (1992, as cited in Taylor, 1990) found that vocabulary instruction directly improves comprehension. He points out that, as the difficulty of words in a text increases, understanding of the text decreases; therefore it is critical for students to have a deep understanding of academic vocabulary in order to understand new concepts. He also states that we use academic vocabulary to communicate to the world what we know. Individuals who can express themselves precisely with appropriate language are more likely to make a positive impression on their employers, colleagues and clients (Cummins, 2002, as cited in Herrel, 2004). McKeon (2002, as cited in Zwiers, 2008) argues that academic vocabulary enables us to communicate our needs, increases our chances that our needs are fulfilled and enables us to understand the needs of others. Furthermore, vocabulary is positively related to higher–status occupations (Marzano, 2004, as cited in Zwiers, 2008). I agree with Marzano; from personal experience, I discovered that vocabulary acquisition is essential to academic, social and professional success. Once again the teacher‘s role in ensuring this success is critical. The language demands of academic learning are enormous. The more diverse, creative and effective teaching strategies the teacher in the English for Academic Purposes classroom employs, the richer the student‘s academic language becomes and the more likely will they experience success with the content and will be able to communicate with various registers. In this paper I will discuss the various teaching strategies currently employed by teachers in the English for Academic Purposes classroom and their implications for effective vocabulary acquisition. In chapter 2, I am going to define the concept ―vocabulary‖ from a broader 4

perspective. Chapter 3 outlines how vocabulary is learned while chapter 4 explores best practices in vocabulary teaching practiced in three educational institutions in the U.S.A. Chapter 5 discusses the new insights that I learned, challenges experienced within the English for Academic Purposes class room and possible solutions to these problems. In my conclusion I provide suggestions on how ESOL teachers can assist the ELLs in their academic language development more effectively and how this study has impacted my current and future teaching career.

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CHAPTER 2 WHAT IS VOCABULARY? Graves (2000, as cited in Taylor, 1990) defines vocabulary as the entire stock of words belonging to a branch of knowledge or known by an individual. He also states that the lexicon of a language is its vocabulary, which includes words and expressions. Krashen (1998, as cited in Herrel, 2004) extends Graves‘ definition further by stating that lexicon organizes the mental vocabulary in a speaker‘s mind. An individual‘s mental lexicon is that person‘s knowledge of vocabulary (Krashen, 1998, as cited in Herrel, 2004). Miller (1999, as cited in Zimmerman, 2007) states that vocabulary is a set of words that are the basic building blocks used in the generation and understanding of sentences. According to Gardener (2009, as cited in Adger, 2002) vocabulary is not only confined to the meaning of words but also includes how vocabulary in a language is structured: how people use and store words and how they learn words and the relationship between words, phrases, categories of words and phrases (Graves, 2000, as cited in Taylor, 1990) Cummins (1999, as cited in Herrel, 2004) states that there are different types of vocabulary: Reading vocabulary This refers to all the words an individual can recognize when reading a text. Listening vocabulary It refers to all the words an individual can recognize when listening to speech. Writing vocabulary 6

This includes all the words an individual can employ in writing. Speaking vocabulary This refers to all the words an individual can use in speech. Lexicon also refers to a reference book containing an alphabetical list of words with information about them and can also refer to the mental faculty or power of vocal communication (McCarthy, 1990, as cited in Taylor, 1990). According to McCarthy (1990, as cited in Taylor, 1990) the role that mental lexicon plays in speech perception and production is a major topic in the field of psycholinguistics and neurolinguistics. Celce-Murcia and Larsen Freeman (1999) define lexicon as a mental inventory of words and a productive word derivational process. They also state that lexicon does not only comprise of single words but also of word compounds and multi-word phrases (Celce- Murcia and Larsen Freeman, 1999). According to Celce-Murcia and Larsen Freeman (1999) lexical units function at three levels: the level of the individual word, word compounds and co-occurrences and conventional multi-word phrases. Nations and Waring (2000, as cited in Adger, 2002) on the other hand, classify vocabulary into three categories: high frequency words, general academic words and technical or specialized words. Academic comprehension improves when students know the meaning of words. Words are the building blocks of communication. When students have a great vocabulary, the latter can improve all areas of communication, namely speaking, listening, reading and writing. Current models of reading in the English for Academic Purposes ESL class room consider vocabulary knowledge an important source of variation in reading comprehension, because it affects higherlevel language processes such as grammatical processing, construction of schemata and text 7

models (Adams and Collins, 1977 as cited in Zimmerman, 2007). When students have a higher academic vocabulary development, they can tolerate a small proportion of unknown words in a text without disruption of comprehension and can even infer the meaning of those words from rich contexts. English language learners who experience slow vocabulary development are less able to comprehend text at grade level. Such students are likely to perform poorly when assessed in various areas and are at risk of being diagnosed as learning disabled. I am cognizant of the fact that vocabulary acquisition, semantic development and growth of word knowledge are currently being studied in several interesting ways, hence the research that is presented here is to complement and augment these studies by introducing effective vocabulary teaching strategies in the English for academic purposes ESL classroom that will expedite the vocabulary development in ELLs. Without some knowledge of vocabulary, neither language production nor language comprehension would be possible. Thus the growth of vocabulary knowledge is one of the essential pre-requisites for language acquisition and this growth of vocabulary knowledge can only be possible when teachers employ effective vocabulary teaching and learning strategies which are the objectives of this research thesis. With the large deficits in second -language vocabulary of ELLs, it is crucial that students in the English for academic purposes classroom to first have a semantic understanding of what academic vocabulary is before they even learn it.

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What is Academic Vocabulary? ‖ Academic vocabulary is the language that is used by teachers and students for the purpose of acquiring new knowledge and skills which includes learning new information, describing abstract ideas and developing student‘s conceptual understanding ‗‘ (Chamot and O‘Malley, 2007 as cited in Herrel, 2004). Academic vocabulary is used across all academic disciplines to teach about the content of the discipline; e.g. Students who study chemistry are required to know the chemistry concepts. According to Marzano (2004, as cited in Adger, 2002) academic vocabulary includes general academic terms such as analyze, infer and conclusion. It enables students to understand the concepts and content taught in schools; it is critical for students to have a deep understanding of the content vocabulary in order to understand the concepts expected throughout the content standards (Schmidt, 2005, as cited in Zwiers, 2008). Academic vocabulary helps students to convey arguments and facilitate the presentation of ideas in a sophisticated manner. It prepares students for academic success by helping them preview, learn and practice vocabulary from Academic Word Lists (Cummins, 2002, as cited in Zwiers, 2008). According to Cummins (2002, as cited in Zwiers, 2008) the main barrier to student comprehension of texts and lectures is low academic vocabulary knowledge, due to the subtechnicality of the academic language. He points out that academic vocabulary is based on more Latin and Greek roots than the daily spoken English vocabulary. Cummins (2000, as cited in Zwiers, 2008) also states those academic lectures and texts use longer and more complex sentences than are used in spoken English. Cummins (2002, as cited in Zwiers, 2008) suggests 9

that academic vocabulary contributes to the development of Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP) in ELLs which enables them to apply the language, using abstractions in a sophisticated manner. It also enables them to think and use language as a tool for learning.

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CHAPTER 3 HOW WE LEARN VOCABULARY “The limits of my language are the limits of my mind. All I know is what I have words for” – Ludwig Wittgenstein 3.1 My personal journey of vocabulary learning I was in eighth grade, when I first encountered the word ―sincere‖. Ms. Brown, my English teacher, wrote the word on the board and talked about what it meant to be sincere. She called on us to think of people we knew who were sincere and what they did that made them sincere. To me ―sincere‖ was a good word and I strongly desired to make it my own. I was excited to think about sincere behavior and sincere people. I wanted to be sincere myself. Soon after that, I started noticing the word in newspapers, in overheard conversations and on television. It was amazing to me that I knew a word even used by actors. That experience was the beginning of my fascination with vocabulary. The fact that I knew the meaning of ―sincere‖ and could use it was a milestone in my English language learning journey. I believe Decarrico is right in stating that efficient vocabulary learning is a productive, incremental and continuous process that requires meaningful recurring encounters with a word over a long period of time (Decarrico, 2001, as cited in Adger, 2002). 3.2 My journey of vocabulary learning at the SIT Graduate Institute My vocabulary learning journey at SIT has been a profound and academically enriching experience. During my studies at SIT, I was privileged to be part of a dynamic study group. The majority of the members were native English speakers with a high level of vocabulary and 11

fluency. During our study sessions, I was constantly challenged by the range of registers and vocabulary used by the native English speaking members of my study group. During study sessions I would constantly ask for clarifications of words I did not understand. I would write down the words in my vocabulary journal and study these words every time I was alone. I felt at liberty to ask my peers the meaning of all the words and concepts I struggled with in class. My study group sessions became a vital learning component in my academic experience, to such an extent that I dared not miss any of our meetings. I constantly tested out my hypotheses of the vocabulary I had obtained in my other academic classes. I aspired to speak English like a native English speaker and this highly motivated me to study new words which I could use during my group study sessions. Constant interaction with native English speakers and keeping a vocabulary journal has contributed immensely to my vocabulary development. 3.3 What does it mean to know a word? Knowing a word is not an all or nothing situation; it is a complex concept. According to Dale (1989, as cited in Taylor, 1990) the extent of knowledge a person has about individual words can range from a little to a lot and it also includes qualitative connotations about words. Dale (1989, as cited in Taylor, 1990) provides a description of the extent of word knowledge in terms of 5 stages: 3.3.1

The student has no knowledge about the word.

3.3.2 The student has a general sense ...